Holocaust program pairs survivors with Palo Alto teens

Share this:

Samantha Alvarez, 19, of Palo Alto, left, heard firsthand the experiences of Denise Elbert, who survived the Holocaust during World War II. Alvarez was a senior at Gunn High School when she was paired with Elbert as part of the Holocaust Center’s Next Chapter program, which offers students the opportunity to learn of the Holocaust from a survivor who lives in the Bay Area. (Photo provided by Jewish Family and Children’s Services)

It was her mother’s intuition that spared Denise Elbert from the gas chambers during the Holocaust in World War II.

Elbert was 9 months old in 1942 when she boarded a train headed for Sobibor with her mom and dad. Young Jewish Slovakian families, like the Elberts, had been told they were needed to help build a major German city, and locals lined the platform to see them off.

When Elbert’s mother spotted a good childhood friend, she decided to ask the friend to care for her daughter until the couple got settled in the new city.

None of the Jewish families knew then that Sobibor was a death camp.

“I think it was pure instinct,” Elbert said, “and that saved me.”

Elbert, 75, of Sunnyvale, knows her story is unique in that she is one of the younger survivors of the Holocaust.

Because of this, she willingly shares her story with young people through the Holocaust Center’s Next Chapter program, which pairs survivors with teens and regularly engages in a speaker series.

Samantha Alvarez, 19, says she was lucky as a Gunn High School senior to participate in Next Chapter and be paired with Elbert.

“My mom always told me that the opportunity to talk with a Holocaust survivor and hear their story is a special one as it becomes more and more rare,” Alvarez said. “It has become almost unheard of.”

Alvarez’s great-grandparents immigrated to the United States before World War II from near the Austria-Germany border. So it meant a lot to Alvarez to learn of the time period through Elbert’s first-person account.

“It’s an invaluable way to connect with our history,” Alvarez said. “I’m a huge advocate for the program.”

There are about 5,000 Holocaust survivors still living in the Bay Area, according to Morgan Blum Schneider, director of education for San Francisco-based Jewish Family and Children’s Services Holocaust Center.

“We have a rich archive with letters, photographs, original passports, but our survivors are, of course, the most sacred primary sources we have,” Blum Schneider said.

The essence of Next Chapter is to help students build relationships with survivors, get a better understanding of the Holocaust and patterns of genocide, and to encourage students to give back to their communities based on what they’ve learned, Blum Schneider said.

The center picks about 30 students each year to participate in the program and those of all backgrounds are encouraged to apply.

Participants in Next Chapter have access to the center’s research library, with more than 14,000 volumes of books, and they also meet in group sessions to hear the experiences of other survivor-student pairings.

The center also offers opportunities to connect with survivors on a rolling basis; interested groups are welcome to contact organizers.

The center also works to expand the history of Jewish people beyond the Holocaust to give students context of Jewish life and culture, Blum Schneider said.

“The work we do today is extremely relevant, with the world refugee crisis going on and the rise of hate crimes in this challenging world we live in today,” Blum Schneider said. “The stories of survivors are resonating with students now more than ever.”

Elbert said it’s crucial that next generations be informed.

“Look at the Middle East. Anti-Semitism is still prevalent today,” Elbert said. “Hopefully they will listen and be alert and vigilant, and pay attention to what is happening in the world. If people ignore things, something like the Holocaust can happen again.”

Alvarez and Elbert met several times over the course of about five months so Alvarez could document Elbert’s story in an online essay.

“The biggest standout thing for me is being able to connect with my own heritage by hearing about Denise’s experiences directly from her,” Alvarez said. “She has the perspective of a very young person whose life was really affected.”

The Elberts’ family friend hustled Elbert, wrapped in fur, from the train platform safely home. She had Elbert baptized as a Lutheran and had a new birth certificate made.

Though Elbert’s family and non-Jewish townspeople had no clue of the murders taking place outside Slovakia, they were aware of the erosion of the rights of Jewish people.

As Nazi officials entered Slovakia, Jewish people lost their right to drive, own radios and keep valuables such as fur and leather.

Elbert’s grandmother had to convert to Christianity to adopt Elbert. Soon after Elbert’s grandfather was forced to give up operations of his general store to a Nazi official, he died from a heart attack.

Elbert’s journey involves hiding in mountain caves with partisans as Nazi troops moved in to suppress uprisings.

Eventually, Elbert and her grandmother were shipped to Terezin, a camp from which thousands were sent on to Auschwitz. Though separated at the camp, they survived until Terezin was liberated in May 1945.

Hundreds of high school girls browse through clothes racks for the perfect prom dress during the "Dressed by West" event created by Lesley West at the Golden State Warriors practice facility in Oakland.

For the second time this year, the Cupertino community and other interested stakeholders got a chance to help shape the future of Vallco. A March 13 presentation at Cupertino Community Hall led by Dan Parolek of Berkeley-based architecture and urban design firm Opticos included live polling as well as breakout sessions where people were invited to write down their ideas...

Sunnyvale residents are being asked to help the city name its newest park. Dedicated to the city as part of The Vale residential development at 925 Deguigne Drive, the new 0.8-acre park includes a basketball court, play equipment, open grass area, barbecues and shaded picnic tables. The park isn't finished yet, according to city spokeswoman Jennifer Garnett, adding it should be...